The Information Commons makes it easier for scientists to scratch an itch - exploring ideas, questions and correlations without spending the majority of their time downloading, importing and formatting data. Josh Knauer will explain how the Commons unites data from many thousands of sources into a distributed resource available to everyone. It enables individuals, non-profits and government agencies to fuse their data together into one database through a massive peer-to-peer network. Sharing data in the Commons is seamless between individuals and organizations, offering easy, flexible data integration and reuse across many sectors.  Examples of use of the Information Commons in the fields of conservation science, health informatics and demographic modeling will be highlighted during this presentation, with a focus on the collaborative nature of these projects among a broad array of research disciplines as well as audiences in the non-profit, research and government agency sectors.